THE BUILDING WHICH PREVENTED THE FIRE FROM EXTENDING UP KING ST.
THE BUILDING WHICH PREVENTED THE FIRE FROM EXTENDING UP KING ST.
The Fire in King Street—Recollections—The Old Coffee House Corner—The Stores in King Street—The Old Masonic Hall—The St. John Hotel—Its Early Days—The Bell Tower—King Square—A Night of Horror—The Vultures at Work—Plundering the Destitute.
Thefire entered King Street in the western side from Germain and Canterbury Streets. It began by burning down Lawton & Vassie's brick store, erected on the site which contained the famous Bragg building. This stout building and Bowes & Evan's premises were soon buried in the common ruin. The fire went along King Street, destroying Mr. Sharp's dry goods store, Jas. Adams & Co's., James Manson's magnificent palace, including his safe and all his valuable papers, John K. Storey's and Magee Bros., Imperial Block. This last place is quite historic. This block was erected in 1852, by the late John Gillis. It was built on the site where the memorable coffee house stood. Here of an evening for years and years the old men of the place used to sit and gossip and smoke and sip their toddy. Here in 1815 they met to learn the news of the war between France and England, and read the story of Waterloo four or five months after it was fought and won. In this sort of Shakspeare tavern, the leading merchants of the day met and chatted over large sales, and compared notes. Here a verbal commercial agency was established, and here delightful old gossips,like busy Sam Pepys and garrulous old busybodies, like Johnson's Bozzy, met and told each other all about everybody else's affairs. What a time these old fellows had every night sitting there in that quaint old coffee house, chatting and smoking, smoking and chatting again. And there were Ben Jonsons in those days, who wrote dramatic pieces and showed them to their friends over a cup of hot spiced rum. And poets too, full of the tender passion, sighed out hexameters of love in that old coffee house so dear to some of the men we meet to-day who lost everything in the flames on that dark Wednesday in June. Ah, yes, the grand old coffee house was torn down in 1852 to make room for the handsome pile of stone and brick which perished only the other day. The corner is again bare, and the few who remember the coffee house are fast passing away.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. MontrealKING STREET.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. Montreal
KING STREET.
The fire now gained great headway, and soon it was seen taking prodigious leaps, going ahead, and then seemingly to dart back again and finish what it had already begun. The people everywhere were in the wildest state of excitement. In the back streets the fire was progressing and destroying the residences of the men who were trying to save their business property in the marts of commerce. People sent car loads of their more valuable goods to places which appeared to be safe, but which turned out in the end to be of only temporary security. Men had their stores burned at four and five o'clock, and their goods burned at seven and eight o'clock. It was only putting off the evil for a few brief hours. Cartmencharged wildly and exorbitantly—some having to pay as high as fifty dollars to have carted away a cartload of stuff. On every roof in King Street clerks and employers stood with hose and buckets of water, but nothing that man could do or devise held the flames at bay, or kept them off for the brief space of a moment. The fire was determined on a clean sweep, and despite the most strenuous exertions it had its own way, and baffled the efforts of those who attempted to stay its fierce will. Beek's corner, lately in the occupancy of H. R. Smith, bookseller, and a perfect feeder of a fire like this, was an easy prey, and with a loud roar its rafters fell, and a well-known corner was no more. Mullin's shoe store, a building of similar construction, went down in another moment, and now the only brick building in the block from Canterbury Street to Germain Street was attacked by the fire. This was Pine's brick building, a fine structure which several years ago Mr. George Jury Pine built, and in which I. & F. Burpee commenced business, and George Stewart, of Stewart & White, began trade. Messrs. Della, Torre & Co. occupied No. 30, and Geo. Stewart, Jr., Druggist, held the other store, No. 32. The present owner of the building, Stephen Whittaker, of Fredericton, had lately begun the erection of a spacious rear addition, and improvements on a liberal scale had been commenced in the upper stories. The rest of the building was known as the Russell House. This building went to pieces about six o'clock. The photograph rooms were destroyed before Pine's building went, and the flames sped quickly, carrying before them the stores of Bardsley Bros., Scott & Binning, W. K. Crawford, Geo. Salmon, and Hanington Bros.' drug store, formerly Fellows & Co.'s establishment on Foster's Corner, corner King and Germain Streets. The contents of this store were quickly snapped up by the fire, and pills and plasters, soaps and perfumes were spilled about in hopeless profusion and confusion. Mr. T. H. Hall's twin buildings were across the street, but a barrier like that was an easy jump for the infuriated flames. They leaped into the windows, attacked the wood-work, and with a strong pull the two splendid stone buildings were borne to the ground, and thousands of dollars' worth of property lay scattered about in all directions. Mr. Hall occupied the corner store as a book-store, and T. L. Coughlan had the other. Dr. J. M. C. Fiske, dentist held the room overhead.[B]The Gordon House, Fred. S. Skinner's grocery store, a row of wooden shanties, Landry's brick building, with a rich stock of organs in it, Logan, Lindsay & Co.'s large grocery, A. & J. Hay's, Geo. Nixon's, Wm. Warn's bath-rooms, W. H. Watson's, Geo. Suffren's, W. H. Patterson's, Taylor & Dockrill's, George Sparrow's, R. McAndrew's, and the United States Hotel, only lived a short time in the very heart of the fire.
PINE'S BRICK BUILDING KING ST., THE ONLY BRICK BUILDING BETWEEN CANTERBURY AND GERMAIN STS.
PINE'S BRICK BUILDING KING ST., THE ONLY BRICK BUILDING BETWEEN CANTERBURY AND GERMAIN STS.
The fire closed here for a moment, engaging a building dear from long and good service to the people of St. John, and eminently historical in its way. The United States Hotel, as Mr. Hinch, the photographer, called it, when hetook possession of it a few years since, was known for many years as the old Masonic Hall. It stood on the corner of King Street and Charlotte Street, and was commenced by the Free and Accepted Masons in 1816. It was decided to erect this Temple of Masonry at a meeting of the craft held April 1, 1816. The lot of land was leased from the corporation of Trinity Church, and on the 28th September following the corner-stone was laid, on which was inscribed the following:—
"This stone of the Masonic Hall was laid on 28th Sept., 1816, of the era of Masonry 5816, and the reign of George the Third, King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, in the mayoralty of John Robinson, Esq., by Thomas Wetmore, Esq., H.M. Attorney-General of N.B., as Grand Master, substitute of John Pike, Esq,. Grand Master of the Society of Masons, Nova Scotia, and the jurisdiction thereof."
BELL TOWER AND KING SQUARE.
BELL TOWER AND KING SQUARE.
The movement was not successful in a pecuniary sense, for in 1819 the building was sold at sheriffs sale, at suit of James Hendricks. The purchaser was Israel Lawson. Mr. Lawson had the building completed, and leased the third or upper story to the Masons. The room was 60 feet by 30 feet, with two large ante-rooms. It was in this room that all the concerts, balls, public parties, and public meetings given in the city were held for many years. Up to 1836 the house was known as the Masonic Hall, but after this year its name was changed. The St. John Hotel Company was formed, and the building was purchased from Mr. Lawson and converted into a hotel. Itwas called the "St. John Hotel," and Mr. Cyrus Stockwell father of the Honourable Mr. Stockwell, editor of theBoston Journal, opened it on May 24th, 1837. He was its first proprietor. A copy of the company's original seal is given below. It was made of brass, and was two inches in diameter.
Brass Medal
This was the first hotel in St. John. It was here that Governor-General Poulet Thompson and LordElgin stopped, and all the notables who from time to time visited the city. In 1840, Mr. Stockwell retired, and Messrs. W. & J. Scammell succeeded him in the management of the hotel. These enterprising gentlemen set to work at once to remodel the building, and they soon had it in splendid working order. The same energy which the present firm of Scammell Bros. throw into their business, was characteristic of the old firm of Scammell Bros. in 1840. In 1851, W.& J. Scammell left the St. John Hotel, and took up their quarters in the Waverley House, nearly opposite. Thepicturewhich accompanies this sketch of the oldhotel represents the building as it appeared in 1837. It is taken from an old picture, and as but two or three copies were known to exist before the late fire, it is a question now if more then one copy was saved. The old St. John Hotel is full of associations, pleasurable in every case, to travellers who used to come to St. John thirty and forty years ago. Even in 1858, when Messrs. Whitney & Adams kept it, it was still a home for the stranger. There was a freedom about its old rooms, and a positive luxuriance which one looks for in vain in the hotels of our later days. About 1861-62, people used to sit in Ned Sharland's book-store, which was on the ground-flat, and sketch the Bell-tower, which was then certainly "a thing of beauty," even if Mr. Warner found it the reverse in 1874, when he climbed up to the triumphal arch and found it was made of wood, painted and sanded, instead of solid stone, as he thought it was. This bell-tower was erected in 1851, and the large bell which for years tolled out that fire was at hand, was made in 1852, and came from Meneely's, West Troy, New York. Before that day, men struck a gong from a scaffold whenever there was a fire. The tower was useful even in its latter days, if its beauty had departed three years ago. The cut which we supply will give the reader at a distance some idea of the old tower, as it appeared in its lusty young days. When the city comes to be built up again, the site of the late hotel must not be forgotten. It is eminently adapted for an hotel. It is centrally located, and has a frontage of 120 feet on King Street, by 100 feet on Charlotte Street.King Square did much to stay the onward march of the fire. It was a haven of rest for those weary ones who were flying from the flames, with the few things they had saved from the burning. It was the camping ground of the soldiery, and the hospital bed of the sick and wounded, who were borne to the fresh grass, and laid there until help was brought to them. The Square, the first few days of the fire, was filled with furniture, and books, and household utensils. It was in this square that half-famished women, that night, hugged their little ones to their hearts, and rocked them, hungry and cold, on the sward till they went to sleep, only to awaken again and cry for something to eat. It was here that women gathered into slips the flying feathers that danced upon the grass and were the playthings of the wind, trying to save enough of what remained to make a rest for their heads. It was here they sat with wildly staring eyes, looking out into the night, while all around them the embers flew about, and the heavens were red with the sporting flames. It was before this that the Bell-tower fell with a deafening crash, and many a heart quailed in the Square, for this told that another historic fragment was swept away, and that the terrible fire was near at hand. Sobbing children ceased their wailing for a time, and feeble mothers prayed that God in His mercy might avert the calamity, and stay the warring flames. There was no more sleep for the tired ones. They must wander about, ringing their hands and crying aloud in their awful despair. Even men who had faced a thousand dangers,quailed before the advance of the fire. The streets were alive with hurrying pedestrians. Horses were driven at breakneck speed, and the clattering hoofs told that danger was at hand. Human vultures stood, with their "pickers and stealers," ready to pounce upon everything that could be seized, and the presence of an appalling danger did not deter them from plundering the unfortunate and the destitute. It was the old war again, of the strong against the weak and powerless. A female vampire helped a widow lady to gather her little things together in a bundle, while her children stole the silver and jewelry, and made off with their plunder. Rough half-grown men stopped children in the streets, and snatched from their arms the treasured fragments from a broken home, which they were trying to rescue from the elemental spoiler. Loafers and thieves held high carnival, and despite the agony which was felt on all sides, these miscreants never for an instant forgot that they were thieves, or neglected to ply their calling when chance threw anything in their way. All night they roamed the streets, and thrived on the misfortunes of others. Ask them for assistance, and they knocked you down. Give them something to hold a minute, and they made off with it. The vilest scum that ever filled a penitentiary stalked abroad that night, and their lawlessness but added to the horror of the hour.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. MontrealVIEW OF KING ST., SHOWING ST. JOHN HOTEL, 1837.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. Montreal
VIEW OF KING ST., SHOWING ST. JOHN HOTEL, 1837.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. MontrealNORTH SIDE KING ST. AND BELL TOWER.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. Montreal
NORTH SIDE KING ST. AND BELL TOWER.
FOOTNOTES:[B]The Orangemen of St. John District met in this hall.
[B]The Orangemen of St. John District met in this hall.
[B]The Orangemen of St. John District met in this hall.
The fire in Germain Street—The first brick house in St. John—Old Trinity—The Loyalists—Curious ideas about insurance—The rectors of Trinity—The Clock—The Royal Arms.
Thefire along Germain Street was of great volume, and dealt out destruction in a thoroughly wholesale manner. A good many buildings of more than ordinary note were situate in this pleasant street, and to these may be added a large number of churches, some of them being of especial importance in an historical point of view. The fire came along briskly, carrying Foster's Corner, Foster's shoe store, and the little buildings adjoining, till it reached Dr. Ring's residence, the old Disbrow property, the first brick house in St. John. The doctor had lately improved it by extensive building operations, but in an hour or two hardly a fragment remained to mark the spot, save parts of the well-built walls and the tall chimneys. Mrs. Chas. K. Cameron's millinery store and Hamilton & Lounsbury's place of business were in the two stores in this building, and they very soon were lost to sight. Lordly, Howe & Co.'s furniture warerooms, filled with new stock, were greedily devoured by the flames, and Geo. Hutchinson, jr., who kept the time ball in working order, lost all his jewelry and stock. The precious stones and gold and silver ornaments in his safe were totally ruined also. The Mansion Hotel, a small boarding house, was soonamong the general mass of debris, and the fire whizzed across the street, and directed its entire force on Old Trinity. First the steeple went, and then the whole body of the old church was in a sheet of flame, and there was barely time left to save the historic Royal Arms which Captain Frank B. Hazen got out of the building, and a few prayer books in the vestry, and the minister's surplices, which Colonel Chas. R. Ray rescued from destruction. The communion plate was in a safe, and it too was saved; but this was all. During the burning of this sacred edifice the greatest consternation prevailed among the people who lined the streets. Now surely there was no resisting the fire. The hoarse roar of the tornado of flame seemed to sound like a mocking laugh, and when the rafters of the oldest church in the city fell with a dull thud, all felt as if a friend had been torn ruthlessly from their gaze. Many exhibited real emotion; and there were women who cried that afternoon, as they thought of this last relic of their loyalist forefathers being swept away in the cruel and all-devouring fire. Trinity Church has a very remarkable history of its own, and thepicturewhich we supply of it will be perhaps the most attractive of our illustrations to the great mass of the residents of the city. It was ever a monument of the piety and religious tenets of our first settlers. A heritage which they left to their children. It never laid claims to architectural beauty, but it was commodious and homely; and men felt while inside its grand old walls that there was something more than the mere name in religion after all,and the word which they heard was true and good. The Loyalists who settled here in 1783, on that memorable 18th of May, were composed of that stuff which the poet tells us warriors sometimes feel, and they diligently set to work to build on this sterile, rocky soil a city that future ages would acknowledge. They had thrift, integrity, great zeal, enterprise and piety, and these attributes were their strongest points. The man who possesses all these characteristics can give battle to the world and he will conquer. They had true courage in them, these pioneers. They had stability, nerve and character, and were just the men to found a city and plant the seeds of civilization in a community. They erected simple houses at first, and then a church was built in which they could worship that God who had befriended them and journeyed with them to their new homes. The first church was erected in Germain Street, between Duke and Queen Streets, in the lot where Mr. James McMillan lived till he was burned out of it the other day. The faith adopted here was that of the Church of England—as the major portion of the Loyalists were of that persuasion. When the city lots were divided, the "Old Burial Ground" was laid aside for church and burial purposes, and at the south-west corner—where the court-house now stands—it was intended to build a church, and a frame for that object was obtained. The fire of 1784, however, passed over this section of the city, and the founders changed their ideas about the locality in which the projected edifice should stand. The Germain Street building had not been consecrated, and the peoplecontinued to worship there until 1791, when the Trinity Church was erected. The first church then continued to be occupied by various denominations, by the Methodists first, and then by the Baptists, until meeting-houses and chapels of their own could be built; latterly it was used as a private dwelling-house and school-house. The first sermon in Trinity was preached on Christmas Day, 1791, by Rev. Dr. Mather Byles, rector. The following year a bell was put up, and, in 1803 or 1804, stoves, for the first time, were placed in the church. The first Bishop of Nova Scotia, Right Reverend Dr. Charles Inglis, performed the consecration services of the church. This eminent divine was grandfather of Major-General Sir John Inglis, whose deeds of valour at Lucknow will never be forgotten while glorious exploits in military history live in the memory of men. Thomas Horsfield and Fitch Rogers were the first church-wardens of Trinity, and the vestrymen were Hon. Gabriel Ludlow, Ward Chipman, Munson Jarvis, Thomas Whitlock, Nathan Smith, Thomas Elmes, William Hazen, Colin Campbell, Nehemiah Rogers, Isaac Lawton, Thomas Bean, and Samuel Hallet; vestry clerk, Colin Campbell; sexton, James McPherson. General Coffin and Thomas Whitlock gave the ground for the building, and Messrs. Bean & Dowling were the builders. This Mr. Bean was the gentleman who, in June, 1811, when the church wanted to borrow £200, agreed to lend it that sum on the express condition that the insurance policy then on the building should be at once cancelled. An order was passed cancelling the policy without delay. Thus wasTrinity for a while without insurance. Had Mr. Bean's ideas prevailed to-day the congregation would, in all likelihood, mourn the loss of $20,000, which is the amount that was on the building at the time of the fire. When the edifice was finished, it was found to be of a peculiar shape, and its breadth was out of all proportion to its length. This was not an accident, however, for the builders wisely thought the city would grow, and that as the requirements of the people needed it, the church might be made larger. Little change had taken place in the interior arrangements of the church at the time of its destruction. The same pews had stood over four score of years, and all the alteration that was made was a slight cutting down of the backs of some of the centre ones. The side pews remained the original height. For seventy-three years the old organ has been in constant use in Trinity. It was brought from London in 1804, and cost a good round sum. The freight on it alone was one hundred guineas, but the owner of the vessel which brought it over, Hon. Wm. Pagan, remitted the amount back to the corporation of the church. To its last days, this organ has been a good instrument. In 1792, Mr. William Thomson presented Trinity with a bell, for which he received a cordial vote of thanks. This bell was in active service till 1857, when the bell which tolled a few days ago its last sad peals, was mounted in the belfry. The town-clock, as every one was accustomed to call the clock which told of the passing hours, too, has a history. In 1810, Mr. John Venning erected the tower and cupola.He had nearly completed his work one May morning, when owing to a light fall of snow the staging became slippery, and when Mr. Venning stepped upon it he slipped from it to the roof, and from thence to the ground, where he was picked up dead. In 1812, the clock was placed in position, and has remained there, till the events of Wednesday ended its career. Barraud, of Cornhill, London, was the maker, and it cost £221 19s. sterling; the Common Council voted £50 towards it. Up to 1814, the church paid for having the time-piece wound, and in this year the winding cost £6 15s., when the church people decided that they would no longer attend to this service, and maintained that the commonalty should see to it. The Council, on December 24th, 1814, resolved to act on the suggestions of the Church corporation, and took upon themselves the duty of keeping the clock wound up and in repair. Edward Taylor assisted in putting up the clock and assumed control of it, till Mr. Wm. Hutchinson, father of Geo. Hutchinson, jr., took charge of it. Previous to 1857, it had three dials, but in this year a fourth was added, and a spire was placed upon the church.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. MontrealTRINITY CHURCH.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. Montreal
TRINITY CHURCH.
In 1811-12 the church was lengthened, and in 1857 it was enlarged again.
The first rector was the Rev. George Bisset, A. M., an Englishman. Before the revolutionary war he was assistant to the rector of Trinity Church, at Newport, Rhode Island. He became, two years later, the rector of that church, and remained in that position until 1779, when the British forces evacuated the island, and Mr. Bissetwent to New York. At the close of the war he came to St. John and was chosen rector of the new parish. In 1786, he went to England on private and public business, and while there raised quite a large sum to further the interests of his church, and to assist materially in the building of the edifice. But in 1788, without seeing his hopes realized, he died, and was buried in the Germain Street church-yard, and subsequently his remains were interred in the Putnam tomb, in the old burial ground, where they still lie.
A Harvard graduate of the class of 1751, was the next rector of Trinity, the Rev. Mather Byles, D.D. For fifteen years, he had laboured as a Congregational minister at New London, and then left that church to link his fortunes with the Episcopalians. He joined the Church and became rector of Christ's Church, Boston, Mass. He left his charge, when the British troops abandoned Boston, and went to Halifax, N. S., where he became Garrison chaplain. When Mr. Bisset died Dr. Byles removed to St. John, was made rector, and preached, as we have said, the first sermon that was ever preached in Trinity Church. In his latter days Dr. Byles was very infirm and required an assistant. He was rector of St. John for 26 years, and died at the age of 80 in March, 1814, loved, honoured and respected. He was a man of fine parts, an excellent talker, of quick and lively nature, and he possessed a rich fund of anecdote and humour. A bundle of his sayings and doings has been published.
Rev. George Pidgeon was the third rector. He was alearned graduate of Trinity College, Dublin, and was born in Kilkenny, Ireland, in 1761. He was an ensign in the rifles, and had served in America during the war. He subsequently went to Halifax, took orders in the Church, became rector of Fredericton and Ecclesiastical Commissary for the Province in 1795, and in 1814, on the death of the incumbent, he was made rector of St. John. His health failed him, however, and for a time the church was closed, when finally he died, May 6th, 1818. He was buried in the old burial ground, and his monument may still be seen there.
The fourth rector was the Rev. Dr. Robert Willis—a Navy chaplain and a very eminent man. His ship was at Halifax coaling, when intelligence reached him that Mr. Pidgeon was seriously ill, and that the church in St. John was closed in consequence. He left at once for St. John where he officiated for several weeks, and on the death of Mr. Pidgeon was chosen rector. The Stone Church and St. George's, Carleton, were erected during his incumbency, and this caused a division in the Parish. Dr. Willis became rector of St. Paul's, Halifax, in 1825, and Arch-Deacon of Nova Scotia, which offices he held until the year 1865, when he died at the age of 80. He was the father of Rev. Cuthbert Willis, rector of Salisbury, who was formerly of the 15th regiment of foot.
In 1825 the Rev. Benjamin Gerrish Gray,D.D., succeeded Dr. Willis as rector of St. John. He was born in Boston 1768, and on the departure of the British troops from that city, while yet a child, he went with his father toHalifax. He graduated at King's College, Windsor, completed his education in England, and was ordained minister in 1796 by Bishop Inglis at Halifax. Some years were spent by him as minister among the Maroons, a discontented body of savages which the British Government placed in Nova Scotia to the great annoyance and fear of the inhabitants. The Doctor spent several years in connection with various missions throughout Nova Scotia until 1819, when he became rector of St. George's, Halifax. He laboured as rector in St. John on the death of Dr. Willis, for fifteen years, when in 1840 he resigned his position. He lived till 1854, when at the advanced age of 86 he died full of honours and respect. He was a man of elevated tastes and liberal ideas. He loved science, art and literature, and was a well informed and polished writer and thinker. In 1833 one of the greatest calamities which ever befell man happened to Dr. Gray. His house in Wellington Row took fire, and before aid could come it was burned to the ground, together with the rector's wife and a female domestic. No sympathy could alleviate the suffering of the distracted husband, no words of man could take away the agony of his deep grief and sorrow. It pressed heavily upon his mind, and he was never again the same man. At this fire he lost his valuable library which contained many rare and costly books and manuscripts, together with the complete records of his parish.
He was succeeded by his son, Rev. John William D. Gray, D.D., a very able man. He was born in 1798, atHalifax, and graduated at King's College, Windsor. He became rector of Amherst, N.S., and in 1825, when Dr. Willis resigned his office in St. John, a movement was made to get the rectorship for Dr. Gray. This was not done, however, for the father was appointed, and the son became his assistant. In 1840, on the retirement of Dr. Benjamin Gray, the sixth rector received the appointment which he held until his death, in 1868. For twenty-eight years this eminent clergyman laboured for his church and his people, and all remember him as a kindly, thoughtful, generous man. He had abilities of the highest order, and, whether as a preacher or a writer, his reputation filled no second place. He wrote with a nerve and a boldness which carried all before it, and his extensive erudition and vast powers of concentration of thought made his works valued and esteemed. His notable writings were chiefly controversial pamphlets, and few entered the lists with him and gained a victory. His vigorous pamphlets on the Catholic question, and the Moses and Colenso controversy will be remembered by many who read these pagesto-day, and all will regret that the great rector never published a theological book or placed his ripe thoughts on some enduring record. He was an able exponent of the Scriptures, and he wrote in a superior and beautiful style. His sermons were models of elegant English and sound doctrinal ideas, and no rector of Trinity ever filled the position so grandly and so loyally as good old Dr. Gray. He died at the age of seventy years, and in the forty-seventh year of his ministry. He was accountedthe best reader in the Province, and his delivery was forcible, and distinguished for a certain gracefulness of style. The Rev. James J. Hill, M. A. succeeded Dr. Gray. He is a native of Nova Scotia. His failing health caused him to resign the rectorship in a few years. At a meeting of the St. John Parish, held on the 21st of July, 1873, the Rev. F. H. J. Brigstocke, of Jesus College, Oxford, was unanimously nominated to the rectorship. He had been in orders twelve years, and for five years had been curate to the Dean of Canterbury. Mr. Brigstocke assumed his duties in October, 1873, and is the present rector of the parish.
The stained-glass windows in the chancel of the old church were placed there in 1859, and were presented by John V. Thurgar, Esq., a respected retired merchant of this city, whose old stand was burned down on the North Wharf during the great fire.
The old arms of Trinity Church have an historic interest of very great importance. A glance at them will reveal the fact that they are military arms and not those of the church. They have escaped fire once or twice, and in the early years of their existence witnessed many a heated controversy, and experienced marvellous escapes from destruction. The first we hear of them was in Boston where they adorned the walls of the Council Chamber of the Old Town House. On March 17th, 1776, they sailed out of Boston Harbour and were carried to Halifax, where they had a temporary abiding place in the old chapel there. They were afterwards placed, in 1791, inTrinity Church, where they have remained ever since, until Captain Hazen rescued them from the flames on Wednesday afternoon. A story is current that a hundred years ago, these arms were snatched from Trinity Church, New York, when that edifice was in flames, but this lacks confirmation, and the best authorities are unanimous in holding that their peculiar build unfitted them for church use, and that they were certainly intended to adorn the walls of council chambers. That they were with the British army, whether on its march or at its station, is settled beyond dispute. This ends the story of old Trinity, the most historic edifice in the city—the first church—the quaintest structure—the last link which bound the old and the new together. The school-house fronting on Charlotte Street was burned at the same time as the church.
The Old Curiosity Shop in Germain Street—A Quaint Old Place—"Rubbish Shot Here"—Notman's Studio—The Mother of Methodism—Destruction of the Germain Street Methodist Church—Burning of the Academy of Music—The Old Grammar School—Presbyterians among the Loyalists—The "Auld Kirk"—Saint Andrew's—The grants of Land—Legislation—The building of the Kirk—Ministers—The "Victoria" in Flames—Fascination of the Fire—The "Victoria" in Ruins—What might have saved it.
Thefire has destroyed Mrs. Lyons's "old curiosity shop,"—an establishment known far and near as a place where everything, from a needle to an anchor, might be got. Mrs. Lyons is an old inhabitant, and for years was a constant attendant at every auction sale, and her judgment has more than once influenced and controlled the bidding. She bought everything, and, what is more curious still, she managed to sell it afterwards at a fair profit. Old books, old pictures, cheap prints, crockery, bedding, carpets, furniture; all had a home in that asylum for decayed rubbish. It was a pleasant place in which to while away an odd hour or two. The things were, at least, worth looking at; and one could sometimes turn over a good book or two, or dip into the pages of an old magazine and find a bit of poetry here and there, or a pleasant essay that was worth glancing over. Of course, nothing out of this stock could be saved, and the curious and out-of-the-way knick-nacks of the people were swept awayin a very short time. Mrs. Lyons is a very heavy loser by the calamity, and narrowly escaped with her life. Indeed she was reported missing at one stage of the fire.
Mr. Notman's beautiful studio with its gems of neat things in art, and its hundreds of elegant picture frames, went next. The premises had only recently been opened, and the reception room was a perfect gallery of beautifully arranged pictures and chromos, and India ink copies. A number of oil paintings, some of them of considerable value, a good many choice bits in water colour, some decidedly clever engravings together with pieces of statuary, and a bronze or two perished in an instant. Not a negative was saved, and the fine picture of Mr. John Melick's handsome boy, which was so artistically finished in India ink by Mr. James Notman, shared a like fate. The studio was full of handsome work, and lovers of the æsthetic whenever they had a spare minute or two always wandered into Notman's and inspected the new things he had there. It was a place of resort for the cultivated mind, and the eye always rested on something pleasing and charming. This building went so rapidly that the occupants barely escaped with their clothes. The fire crossed the street on both sides, and after sweeping down Mr. Edward Sears's house on the corner, and carrying with it Mr. Tremaine Gard's jewelry establishment, it rushed along levelling all before it, till Horsfield Street was reached. On this corner the Mother of Methodism was situated—the old Germain Street Methodist Church—called in olden times "The Chapel." This structure was located a few feet offthe street, and when the fire caught and hugged it in its grasp the concourse of people beheld a sight not easily effaced from their memory. The flames shot up, and for awhile nothing but an avalanche of fire was to be seen. The hot, thick volume roared out and crackled as timber after timber went down before the whirlwind, and rent asunder in an hour, an edifice which had withstood the blasts of the elements for seventy years. In 1808, on Christmas day, this chapel was opened, and dedicated to the service of God, by the Rev. Mr. Marsden. The leading layman at that time was the late John Ferguson, an influential citizen and a prosperous merchant. He did much for Methodism in his time, and it was through his exertions that the chapel was built. For many years this commodious building was the only place of worship that this body of Christians had in the city, and the various clergymen who from time to time preached from its old-fashioned, homely pulpit, developed sterling qualities and superior talents. Among its body of laymen were men distinguished alike for their zeal and religious principles. Such clergymen as Revs. Messrs. Priestly, Wood, Dr. Alder, John B. Strong, Bamford, Wm. Temple and H. Crosscomb, will be affectionately remembered by old members of this congregation, as ministers whose interests were ever closely identified with those of their hearers. The present Chief of Police, John R. Marshall, has been a member of this church all his life, and for thirty years he has led the singing. It was an unpretentious building with no attempts at architectural display. A few yearsago, to meet the wants of the community, it was enlarged and extended back, and the gallery was placed nearer the pulpit. While this building was burning the hospitable residences of James Lawton, Esq., and Wm. Davidson, Esq., were being reduced to ashes, and Dr. McAvenny's fine dental rooms adjoining those houses, went down also.
The burning of the Academy of Music[C]took place almost at the same time. Not a vestige of this splendid hall remains to tell of the dramatic triumphs that have been witnessed on its stage, or the matchless oratory that fell from the lips of Phillips, Beecher and Carpenter. Here it was that a few years ago the great performance of Richelieu took place, when Couldock enacted the Cardinal Duke, and Louis Aldrich was the impetuous De Mauprat. Here on this stage Carlotta Le Clercq won some of her grandest triumphs. Here Warner and Lanergan gave their wonderful interpretations of the Moor and Iago. Here Chas. Koppitz led his great orchestra the daybefore he died, and here some of the sweetest voices have been heard emulating the notes of the nightingale. This building, which for several years enjoyed a splendid reputation, well stocked with scenery and properties, centrally and admirably located, seemed to melt into nothing on the day of the fire. The walls fell with a loud crash, and the grand temple of amusement, in which our people felt so much pride, was a thing of the past. It was owned by a joint stock company, and the late Dr. George E. Keator was the first president. On his death, Dr. Allan M. Ring was made president, and he has retained the office ever since. John R. Armstrong, Esq., has been the secretary from the beginning of the institution. It is only about a year ago that it was frescoed and painted and greatly improved inside. The Academy presented a noble appearance from the street, and the reader can form an intelligent idea of how it looked from the illustration which we give. The Knights of Pythias, New Brunswick and Union Lodges, occupied the upper story as a lodge room. It was neatly and attractively fitted up, and the knights took great interest in having it properly cared for. The loss with which this young organization has met, is quite large and is therefore severely felt.
The last theatrical performance at the Academy of Music was on Tuesday evening, 19th June, when Louise Pomeroy, an actress of charming genius, sustained theroleof "Juliet" in Shakespeare's tragedy of the affections, "Romeo and Juliet." On Wednesday night she was to have performed "Rosalind" for the second time in St.John, in the delightful comedy of "As You Like It." The company then playing were under the management of Mr. William Nannary, with Mr. P. Nannary as assistant manager, and Mr. W. E. Kelly, of Halifax, business agent. Mr. George B. Waldron was stage manager, and his wife, Isabella Waldron, the leading lady. The other members of the organization were R. Fulton Russell, F. G. Cotter, G. T. Ulmer, Harry Pierson, Belvil Ryan, Mr. Padget, Mr. Eberle, J. Reddy, Mr. Vanderen, Mr. Donaldson, W. F. Edwards, C. Mason, Lizzie May Ulmer, Pearl Etynge, Little Bell Waldron, Mrs. Edwards, Mrs. Vanderen, Miss Hill, Mabel Doane, and Florence Stratton. All of these artists suffered by the fire. Some saved their wardrobes, only to have them stolen afterwards.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. MontrealACADEMY OF MUSIC.
The Burland Desbarats Lith. Co. Montreal
ACADEMY OF MUSIC.
After Dr. McAvenny's office was burned, the fire shot into Messrs. Miller and Woodman's double house, the late residence of Hon. A. McL. Seely, and it was soon shattered to its basement. The fire then spread as far as Duke Street, burning on its passage Dr. W. Bayard's house, and the old McGrath residence, which latterly contained Dr. James E. Griffith's office. On the other side, the Grammar School was the first victim after the Old Chapel.
This building was a plain wooden house of rather squat appearance. It was erected on two lots of land, 80 feet front by 200 deep, which in 1807 were sold by Thos. Horsfield for £100. The first teacher was James Brimner. In 1818 Dr. James Patterson took charge, and remained head master till nearly the close of his life.Rev. Mr. Wainright, afterwards rector of New York, and who died Bishop there, was at one time a teacher in the Grammar School. The masters who have taught here have been judiciously selected, and the school has been very successful from the first. Messrs. Hutchison and Manning, and Rev. Mr. Schofield, and latterly Rev. Dr. Coster, are all gentlemen of fine scholastic attainments and excellent imparters of knowledge to the youth. For many years the Corporation gave a gold medal annually to the bright boys of this institution of learning, and many of our prominent lawyers, doctors, engineers and merchants have been educated here. H. W. Frith, Esq., was for many years secretary to the Board who controlled this school, and continued in that office till the new school-law came into force. The Grammar School in its last days was a free school of the highest grade.
It has been said of Scotchmen that next to love of country they revere their religion. Indeed, the love is as warm for the one as it is for the other. The Bible and Home. God and Scotland. Their religion has been compared to their native Grampians, and some have said that it was as hard, cold, determined and unyielding as those grand old hills themselves, the very name of which sends a thrill through every Scotchman's breast. Every Scottish poet has sung of home, every native bard has written hymns and psalms. Burns's "Cotter's Saturday Night" contains the germs of the Presbyterian faith, and Tannahill, Thomson, Campbell, Hogg and all the other tuneful minstrels have sung in the same key, and told of the oldfaith which the Covenanters felt on their bleak hill-tops years ago, when it was deemed by some to be a crime to worship God in more ways than one. It is as rare to find a Scotchman unacquainted with the leading events in the Bible, the gist of the shorter catechism, and the whole of the Psalms of David, including the cxix, word for word, as it is difficult to enter a city all the world over, and not find the sons of the old land filling the leading positions in the place. Our readers may be sure that among the sturdy loyalists not a few Presbyterians were to be found. When they reached St. John, they settled in Lower Cove, and the first thing they did was to consider the advisability of building a kirk. In 1784, the leading men drew up a petition for a grant of land on which to lay the foundation for a house of worship. It was sent to Governor Parr, and on the 29th of June, of the same year, the grant was issued under the Great Seal of Nova Scotia. John Boggs and others, for the Church of Scotland, were the grantees. Their associates were Andrew Cornwall, James Reid, John Menzie, Charles McPherson, William Henderson, John Gemmill, and Robert Chillis, their heirs and assigns in trust. The document runs as follows, and sets forth that the grant was, "for the erection, building and accommodation of a meeting house or public place of worship for the use of such of the inhabitants of the said town as now or shall hereafter be of the Protestant profession of worship, approved of by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland * * * and further for the erection and building and accommodation of a dwelling house, outhouse, casements and conveniences for the habitation, use and occupation of a minister to officiate and perform divine service in the meeting house aforesaid, according to the form and professing aforesaid * * * and further for the building and erection of a public school house and public poor house, with proper accommodation and conveniences for the use of the inhabitants of the said Township of Parr,[D]forever, and upon this further trust and confidence to secure and defend the said piece and tract of land, and all such buildings, edifices, and improvements, commodities and appurtenances, to and for the several and respective public uses, intents and purposes aforesaid forever, but to or for no other or private use, intent and purpose whatsoever."
It further states that in case of the lands coming into possession of any other persons, they shall take the prescribed oath of allegiance within twelve months, and in case of their neglect to do so, the lands shall revert to the Crown. The grant was registered at Halifax, 29th June, 1784, and at Fredericton on December 23rd, same year. These lands were situate on the north side of Queen Street, extending east and west from Sydney to Carmarthen Streets, and north from Queen Street 100 feet. They contain 10 city lots and form a block of 100 by 400 feet.
Charles McPherson, once the owner of "Coffee HouseCorner," survived the other trustees, who died before any of the buildings mentioned in the grant were set up. A change had come over the people's views since then, and the site was not approved of by those interested. It was not central enough, and in 1815 it was decided to ask for a site in the upper part of the town. Wm. Pagan, Hugh Johnston, senr., John Thompson, James Grigor, John Currie, Alexander Edmonds, and William Donaldson were the new Committee whose duty it was to provide "a meeting house for the use of such of the inhabitants as are of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland." In this year the survivor of the trustees of 1784, Charles McPherson, relinquished his interest in favour of the new Committee. James Grigor selected the present site of the church in Germain Street, and in 1815 he purchased it for £250 from J. V. Thurgar's uncle, Mr. John L. Venner. The lot is 100 feet in width and 200 feet in depth. Mr. Grigor and wife, by deed, on the 20th June, 1815, just sixty-two years ago, on the day of the fire, conveyed the property to Wm. Pagan and the rest of the Committee. On June 4th, 1816, another grant of land was given to the Committee by the Corporation of St. John. This lot was in Duke's Ward, and known on the plan as one of the public lots, letter B, bounded on the east by Carmarthen Street, on the west by Sydney Street, and on the south by lots 1086 to 1077 inclusive. The latter lots are on St. James' Street. This also was in special trust for the Kirk of Scotland in this city, and the grant was unconditional. This block was fourhundredfeet square, and a vacant field. The Committee built houses upon it some years after, and laid out the street from Sydney to Carmarthen, known as St. Andrew's Street. William Campbell was Mayor, and Charles J. Peters, Clerk.
The Act 56 George III., cap. 28, passed 16th March, 1816, recites to this effect:
"Whereas sundry inhabitants of the City of St. John and its vicinity, being of the Protestant profession of worship, approved by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, have, by voluntary subscription, aided by a grant[E]of money out of the Province (1814), erected a large and handsome building for a place of public worship, which shall be in connection with the said Church of Scotland: And whereas, the title of the lots on which the said church has been erected, situated in Queen's Ward in the said city, and fronting on Germain Street, is now in the possession of the inhabitants of the said city, who hold the same in trust: Be it enacted, that the minister and elders of the said church, commonly called by the name of Kirk, whenever such ministers shall be chosen and appointed, the said lots shall be vested in them, they being known by the name of the minister and elders of the Church of Scotland in the City of St. John."
In 1818, Act 58 was passed, and this statute authorized the Kirk's ministers and elders to have full power to purchase, receive, hold, and enjoy lands, and tenements, and to improve and use the same for the purpose of supporting and maintaining the building erected in St. John for a place of public worship, and of its minister for the time being; but such rents, with the rents of pews, shall not exceed annually the sum of £500.
An important discovery was made in 1832, when it was found that the legislation that had been had was entirely at variance with Presbyterian usage, which separated the spiritual from the temporal affairs of the church, leaving the spiritual department in the hands of the minister and his elders, and vesting the management of the temporalities in a body of trustees to be named. A new bill was prepared, and accordingly the following was speedily enacted by 2 William IV. cap. 18, "that according to the form and usage of the Church of Scotland the spiritual and temporal affairs of the said church are kept separate, and that the present acts of incorporation vesting the temporal affairs of the St. Andrew's Church, in the City of St. John, in the minister and elders is at variance with the form and usage of the said Church of Scotland."
All previous acts were repealed, and the following gentlemen, who were the committee of management then: Thos. Walker, Robert Rankin, John Wishart, John Robertson, James Kirk, Robert Keltie, James Burns, Henry Hood, William Parks, William Walker, James Robertson and Daniel Leavitt, with the elders, John Paul, Robert Robertson, Thomas Nisbet, William Hutchinson, Angus McKenzie and John Gillis, were appointed interim trustees until the election of twelve other trustees as provided bythe Act, could be had. This Act is still in operation, and it fixes the annual rents at not more than £500, and prescribes the proceedings as to the election and choice of trustees, ministers, and elders, the sales and leases of pews, lands, &c.
In 1815 the kirk was finished, and the trustees were Messrs. Pagan, Johnston, Thomson, Grigor, and Edmond, Rev. Mr. Waddell, father of Dr. Waddell, many years resident physician at the Lunatic Asylum, preached the first sermon. The Rev. Geo. Burns was the first regularly appointed minister, he had been an assistant minister in Aberdeen, Scotland, Mr. Hugh Johnston who had been commissioned to go to Scotland for a clergyman, chose Mr. Burns who was a young man of 26 years of age, and a doctor of divinity. The degree was conferred on him by the University of St. Andrew on his departure for America, and the new Kirk was called "St. Andrew" in compliment to Dr. Burns'sAlma mater. The young doctor arrived in St. John on Sunday, the 25th of May, 1817, and on that day preached his first sermon from Psalm cxxii, 1, "I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the House of the Lord." Dr. Burns continued minister until 1829. He left St. John May, 1831, and on the 5th February, 1876, he died in Edinburgh at the ripe age of 86. The Rev. Robert Wilson was the second minister of the Kirk, and he officiated from 1830 to 1842. The Rev. Andrew Halket succeeded him from 1842 to 1848. He died in the fall of 1875, at Brecken, Scotland. The Rev. Wm. Donald, D.D., wasthe fourth minister of this now influential church, he was ordained at Aberdeen, in May, 1849, and on the 18th of June he reached St. John, and took immediate possession of his charge. His ministry was a long and able one, and no minister was ever loved more and respected higher than this teacher of the sacred word. He was ever kindly disposed towards his people and his congregation were ever devoted to him, their interests were his interests, and his interests were theirs. When he died 20th Feby., 1871, the whole city mourned, and old St. Andrew's refused to be comforted. The Rev. R. J. Cameron, who was Dr. Donald's assistant for some time, succeeded him in the ministry of the church. The Rev. Mr. Mitchell, who began his labours on the 30th January, 1877, was the last incumbent. During the long career of the old kirk—the oldest Presbyterian church in the Province—it has changed but little since it was erected. Some trifling alterations have been made in the interior, but externally it has remained for over three score years the same. Three memorial tablets had been placed upon the walls, the first was in memory of William Pagan, the second William Campbell, and the third Dr. Donald. The first Presbyterian minister who died in St. John was the Rev. Thomas Wishart.[F]